Melody
by NeonZangetsu
Summary: Two strangers, thrown together by the strangest circumstances, and the need to live. One, with no memory of anything but his name, the other, a rough, saddistic tomboy bent on becoming a shinobi. What will happen? Read to find out. NarutoxTayuya


The jungle itself was a concave of myraid sights and sounds when at last he came to. It was hot and humid, full of vibrant life...and a dull roaring in his ears.

_"Ugh...my head."_

He didn't look like much, a boy, possibly around fourteen, clad in a tattered blue and orange jumpsuit, wearing what looked like a piece of cloth about his neck, and an elaborate, ornate mask that closely resembled a fox skull, hanging over his right eye. His build was compact, yet athletic for his age, and though he only stood around 5'9, by the way he held himself, this one was someone who spent much of his life outdoors, rather than indoors.

Straightening himself up, the youth reached to his face, and removed the mask, exposing sapphire blue eyes, a blank, now confused face, where rough, spiky blond hair hung over into his eyes.

"Eh? Where'd this mask come from... Most notably, roughy, spiky blond hair, the bangs of which hung over into his eyes.

A small, frustrated sigh esaped his lips, and in anger, he tossed it away.

"Well, where the _hell _am I?!"

Echoes greeted him.

When no reply was forthcoming, the blond groaned, slapping one hand to his forehead, a gesture of exasperation. Ahead, lay the unexplored depths of this mysterious jungle, and behind him lay a series of fallen trees.

_"How did I get here?"_

The thought only left him with more questions, irritating him further. A glimmer of light caught his eyes just then, and a faint breeze blew aside the tattered foliage.

Looking at it, the blade looked like a tattered nodachi, the exact length of his entire body, its sheathe connected to a thick leather strap, clearly meant to be worn around the shoulders.

"Wonder how _that_ got there?"

A dull roar from the forest depths answered him this time, drawing forth a nervous gulp. "Um...maybe I should just hang onto this for protection.. He gulped again, now reaching down to pick up the blade, but when he tried to shoulder the strap, it snapped in half, much to his frustration.

"Damnit!" This now forced the boy to hold it by its sheathe."Well, I guess I'm walking."

The thought of just _walking_ through this creepy place was a little unnerving.

Crashing through the undergrowth at a breakneck pace, the blond soon noticed a large boar, scratching at a neaby tree with its tusks. His stomach growled pleadingly, and immediately the frown flipped into a mischevious grin, while one hand reached for the sword's frayed hilt.

"Ah well, might as well get something to eat."

Alas, the blade produced a horrid scratching sound as he drew it, and he soon realized why. The damn katana was coated in rust, its edge horribly blunted from lack of use. Evidently, it hadn't been used in quite some time.

A snorting sound now, followed by a low growl.

"Uh-oh." His tan visage turned pale.

And apparently, he'd alerted the boar to his prescence with that sound. It was _big_, bigger than he'd expected it to be, and as the creature swerved to face him, he could see an ugly cut running from its left eye, down to its jaw. oozing puss and blood, almost as if it'd been in a fight only recently.

However, its right eye was locked firmly on _him_.

"AH!"

Yet, just before he would've been gored by its tusks, a sound passed by. It sounded like...a flute? The beast seemed to hear it now, paused, less than an inch from his face, and turned in the direction of the sound.

Only to turn back, as the snapping of a twig reminded it off the boy trying to escape, now running for his very life. But before the boar could even hope to give chase, a hail of sharp objects fell from the canopy above, impaling the pig through its skull, and killing it instantly as a dark blur drove the last one home.

"Jeez, you're an idiot!" The voice, that of a young girl, greeted his ears, but for a time, he was too shocked to reply, even when she saw that she was about his age. "What're ya doing here anyways?!"

"Um...where _is _here?"

"Dumbass, this is jungle country." The redhead scowled at him briefly, then returned her attention to the task at hand, removing the sharp pikes from the boar's carcass.

"W-Who're you?"

"Tayuya." She grunted, pulling two of the poles out at once, tossing the gory sticks aside, only to focus on removing another, this one embedded in it's hindquarters. "And I guess I owe ya one, blondie."

"Huh?"

"You got the pig to walk right under me." She replied gruffly, shaking her head in irritation, the long red locks flying this way and that, until they settle against the tattered rags covering her back. "Now lemme be. I gotta skin this bugger before the leopards come out."

For another moment, tense silence hung in the air, broken only by the occasional profanity from the girl. Finally. he became so tired of being ignored by the only other human here, that the boy finally decided to try talking to the girl again. With trepidation, the blond approached her. "Um...

"Dumbass!" She smacked at him when he got too close, scowling darkly when he tried to speak again. "Don't sneak up on me like that!"

"Ah!" He threw his hands up to ward off her blows. "Sorry sorry!"

"Well if you're _sorry_, then help me skin this pig!" She all but hissed, grabbing him by the collar, angry amber eyes meeting confused, startled sapphire. "You know how to, right?!"

"Y-Yeah."

She shoved him roughly.

"Then get to it!"


End file.
